Between the years 2000-2005, the portable MP3 player and the multi-functionality of cell phones and PDA devices created an explosion in the number of portable entertainment and communication devices. In 2006, the genesis of the next explosion in portable devices occurred, namely the introduction of the hand-held portable digital video device. Apple Computer is a leader in this market, launching its video IPOD® following its very successful music IPOD® product. Apple Computer is a leader in this market, launching its video IPOD® following its very successful music IPOD® product. In late 2006, Apple successfully negotiated with major entertainment companies to sell the latest releases and other movies in digital download format for use on the video IPOD® product. This move has unleashed the floodgates of consumer usage of these portable media players for the playing of movies, music videos and a full range of video content that have been previously available for other products and channels of distribution. As evidence, in the 4th quarter of 2006 Apple sold 16 million IPOD® devices, fully half (8 million) of these devices were video capable IPODs®.
In addition, there are approximately 2.5 billion cell phones and hundreds of millions of PDA devices in use globally today. These devices are intended for personal use but in many instances it is desirable to enlarge and/or share the screen content of these personal electronic devices.
Portable media players all share a common set of viewing problems. First, the screens are small which makes it difficult to see scene detail. Second, viewing the screen is not private, in that the screen can easily be see by a person sitting next to the viewer. Third, the screen is difficult to see in bright light or daylight environments, since light may reflect off the screen and make it nearly impossible to see the screen content.
While there are several very complicated devices that may be used to view a small LCD screen, such as the IPOD®, these typically involve the use of specific data transfer cables and elaborate eye glass like presentation devices designed to project the image to the wearer. Unfortunately, these devices are very expensive, typically restricted to a particular device, complicated to use and extremely delicate.
One method of sharing electronic screen content with others is a digital projector. This product functions by importing the digital signal from the personal electronic device and transforming it to output a projected image onto a screen or flat surface which allows public viewing of the screen content.
While these electronic projection devices, either personal electronic glasses or digital projectors, are known, their application is extremely limited. Their principal drawbacks are: expense (typically in the $1000+ range), they typically require a separate A/C power connection, they are bulky to transport, and transferring the data from the personal electronic device to the projection device requires the proper ports on the respective devices, cables, and software that are all compatible. As a result, this category of projection device is not functional in many situations and is only used by those people who wish to expend the time, energy and money to utilize such complex systems.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for a relatively inexpensive, lightweight viewing enhancement device for personal electronic devices, for screen magnification, privacy, viewing enhancement and image projection.